Palo Alto pot measure goes up in smoke

By Jason Green

Daily News Staff Writer

Posted:
11/06/2012 08:40:36 PM PST

Updated:
11/07/2012 01:37:09 AM PST

Palo Altans may have supported the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, but they weren't in favor of allowing medical marijuana dispensaries to open in their city, according to early election returns Tuesday.

With 10 of 39 precincts reporting, Measure C was losing 36.73 percent to 63.27 percent. It needs a simple majority to pass.

Brought forward by residents Thomas and Cassandra Moore, the measure would have essentially reversed a ban on cannabis clubs the city enacted in 1997 following the passage of Proposition 215, also known as the Compassionate Use Act.

In addition to allowing up to three medical marijuana dispensaries to set up shop in Palo Alto, Measure C would have imposed a tax of 4 cents per dollar on all gross receipts at the facilities.

The measure attracted significant opposition from the city council, which passed a resolution against it in September. In a colleagues' memo, Mayor Yiaway Yeh, Vice Mayor Greg Scharff and Council Member Larry Klein argued it would open the door to increased criminal activity and promote drug use among children.

"I think we would've become a magnet for all sorts of problems," said Scharff told The Daily News, adding that the nearest cannabis clubs are in San Francisco and San Jose. "I knew the voters of Palo Alto would make the right decision."

The Moores said in a ballot measure argument that medical marijuana dispensaries would actually benefit the city. They pointed out that voters in Palo Alto passed the Compassionate Use Act by a margin of 3-to-1.

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"As longtime residents of Palo Alto, we believe in the character of our community," the Moores wrote. "This measure will strengthen that character by providing medicine to our terminally ill neighbors, generating revenue for city services, and protecting our neighborhoods."